Day 3: Capturing the Footage

We started filming on a day when Mrs. Stoklosa wasn’t in class, which was honestly a bit of a setback. I had a list of questions for her that could’ve really helped guide our process, and it was frustrating knowing those questions would remain unanswered. But the clock was ticking, and we didn’t have the luxury of waiting around. The deadline was looming, so we had no choice but to move forward.

On our filming agenda were three major tasks:

The student interviews

The teacher interviews

The B-roll

These three elements were the backbone of our documentary, and we needed all of them to create something cohesive and compelling. For the interviews, I decided to head to one of my favorite classrooms: Mr. Erdmen’s. He’s one of those teachers who’s super laid back and gets along well with students. Plus, he’s pretty familiar with the slang kids use these days, so I figured he’d be a great candidate for both the teacher interview and helping us coordinate student interviews.

When we arrived at his classroom, we quickly realized it wasn’t the ideal time. The students were in the middle of taking a test, so filming wasn’t an option. At first, this felt like yet another setback, but instead of wasting time, we decided to pivot and work on filming some B-roll footage. We started right there in the 900s building, capturing shots of its architecture and surroundings. We tried to make the shots as dynamic as possible, experimenting with different angles and movements.

For our establishing shots of the school, we needed to film outside. Luckily, the security guards were super kind and allowed us to leave the building for a bit to get the footage we needed. That turned out to be a huge win because we captured some really crisp, atmospheric shots that helped set the scene for our documentary. The natural light outside also gave the footage a clean and polished look, something we didn’t expect but were thrilled about.

Once the test was over, we returned to Mr. Erdmen’s classroom. I asked him if he’d be open to being interviewed, but he politely declined. He crossed his arms in an “X” and explained that he wasn’t comfortable being on camera. I totally understood—being filmed isn’t for everyone, and I appreciated that he was upfront about it. The silver lining was that he still allowed us to interview his students, which was a relief.

We made the most of the opportunity, setting up our shots with care. While we were aiming for a slightly amateurish vibe to keep things lighthearted, we also wanted the footage to look intentional. We used techniques like the rule of thirds to frame the students and kept the classroom background visible to give the shots an authentic, everyday feel. The students’ responses were fun and full of personality, which added a lot of energy to the project. Just as we wrapped up, the bell rang, signaling the end of the period.

Before heading to our next location, we took the chance to grab some more B-roll. We filmed ourselves walking through the hallways, capturing the buzz of students transitioning between classes. The footage felt spontaneous and natural, which fit perfectly with the tone we were going for.

By the end of the day, though, it was clear we still had more work to do. We were short on interviews and still needed additional B-roll to tie everything together. Romina took on the task of filming some extra footage on her own and interviewed one of our mutual friends, Thomas, who was happy to participate. Meanwhile, I decided to track down another teacher who might be willing to help.

I chose my language arts teacher, Mr. Calderon. He was an ideal pick for a few reasons. First, his expertise in language and how it evolves made him uniquely qualified to give thoughtful and insightful answers about the topic. Second, he’s one of those teachers who loves incorporating trendy phrases into his lessons, which made him not only relatable but also genuinely funny. His playful attempts at using Gen Z slang added a lot of charm to his interview, and his answers gave our documentary a layer of depth we hadn’t anticipated.

With all our footage finally gathered, we entered the final and arguably most exciting stage of the project: editing. This was when everything started to come together, and we could finally see our vision taking shape. Each shot, each interview, and each piece of B-roll felt like a puzzle piece falling into place. It was satisfying to watch the narrative we’d worked so hard to craft come alive on screen, and we couldn’t wait to share the finished product.